Dekker entered the game with 14 minutes 51 seconds left in the first half.

He went under a screen while chasing Reggie Hearn, which allowed Hearn to hit an open three-pointer with 14:31 left.

Dekker came out at the next dead ball, with 14:17 left.

To his credit, Dekker is unflappable and played better after he returned. He gave up one backdoor basket to Hearn but contributed 10 points, three rebounds and a block in 18 minutes.

Dekker is already good but when he tightens his defense he will be a more consistent contributor.

The victory leaves UW with four games left, three of which it should win.

UW hosts Nebraska on Tuesday, hosts Purdue on March 3, plays at Michigan State on March 7 and then closes the regular season at Penn State on March 10.

Nebraska is 3-10 in the league, Purdue is 5-8 and Penn State is 0-13. Michigan State, which has beaten UW seven consecutive times in the Breslin Center, is 11-3 in the league.

“You can’t let this one slide,” Bruesewitz said when asked the importance of handling Northwestern. “We have a couple of those on our schedule, games you look at and (understand) we should take care of that.

“But it is the Big Ten…You’ve got to bring your hard hat every night.”